William Hill shareholders rebel

Bookmaker William Hill suffered a blow when a third of its investors voted against its remuneration report, this week.  A further 4.7 percent abstained from the vote, reports indicate in the Daily Express.
Shareholders are disgruntled with Chief Executive Ralph Topping’s 56 percent jump in salary to GBP 1.65 million, including bonuses, last year.  Topping was given a 12 percent increase in his basic salary.
William Hill defended its position saying : “In light of the significant progress the business has made under his leadership and to ensure that his remuneration is more in line with other companies of our size and complexity, the board decided to award Ralph an increase.”
The salary increase is reported to be Topping’s first since his appointment as Chief Executive in 2008 after a pay freeze was instituted at William Hill in 2009.
Deloitte, the companies auditing firm, also appears to be on shaky ground, with 12 percent of investors voting against its reappointment as it reportedly earned more from non-audit work than from actual auditing.

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